This morning, I sent out an email to all the publisher contacts in our database. If you didn't receive that email, please contact Sheila Ruth, sruth at WandsAndWorlds dot com, to make sure I have the correct contact information for your company. (This also applies to self-publishers, if you have an eligible book this year.) For those who didn't get …
On your mark, get set …
Reminder: Nominations open just after midnight tonight. Yes, tonight. That's October 1st, right? So at 12:01 a.m. Eastern time you can click on our nomination form (which will be posted then, I promise) and nominate away. The rules: One book per genre per person. Have two young adult books you love? Get a best friend, co-worker or random stranger to …
Cybils 2.0: Join Us on Social Media
As you've probably already noticed, our organizing staff–particularly our Social Media Guru, Gina Ruiz–has been hard at work trying to make the Cybils more active in the social media realm. Our Cybils Twitter and Facebook accounts have already enjoyed a major boost in the past few weeks, but you can help us continue to spread the word. If you're not …
Are Yooouuu Ready to Rrrrread?
Okay, that was a somewhat sorry attempt at a pro-wrestling-style preamble to get you ramped up for some exciting book-related events over the coming weeks–not the least of which is this week's Banned Books Week. So many of our fantabulous panelists, judges and organizers will be putting up posts (or already have) in conjunction with this important event that I …
A word for our sponsors
We have two ads on our blog now in our center column, which I'm not about to take for granted. I watched ad revenue dry up last year and never recuperate. One of the ads is from the independent publishing firm run by our own Sheila Ruth. She's rightly very proud of the "Ratha" series so please give her ad …
Wear Your Love of Kidlit on Your Sleeve
…or at least, your love of the Cybils. That's right, we've got 2010 Cybils bling ready to go in our Cafe Press store, featuring our nifty new autumnal color scheme. T-shirts? We have a plethora. Coffee mugs? Yes indeedy. We've got some random doodads like magnets, buttons and mouse pads. And, Round 1 panelists take note: we've even got a …
The 2010 Young Adult Fiction Panel
This may be the last panel we have to announce, but it most certainly is not the least! Realistic young adult fiction, historical and contemporary, is what these bloggers will be evaluating, discussing, tweeting about and, if need be, fighting over in the weeks and months to come. Panel Organizer: Jackie Parker, Interactive Reader [TW] Panelists (Round I Judges): Cherylynne …
The 2010 Science Fiction and Fantasy Panel
If you don't have any idea how many amazing sci-fi and fantasy books are published each year for children and young adults, let the number of people on our SFF panels give you a clue. It's a LOT. An abundance of riches. That's why we've got two separate sets of judges for elementary/middle grade and young adult books. Our enthusiastic …
The 2010 Middle Grade Fiction Panel
Fiction for readers aged eight to twelve is the province of our Middle Grade Fiction category, and we're pleased to introduce a panel consisting of both veteran Cybil-ites and new recruits. Over the coming months, they'll be battling it out–in a friendly way, of course–to decide on their favorite middle grade books of the year. Panel Organizer: Kerry Millar, Shelf …
The 2010 Graphic Novels Panel
Every year, more and more exciting work of incredible quality and depth is produced in the realm of graphic novels for kids and young adults. Our panel of comics enthusiasts, rabid readers and thoughtful bloggers is ready to put their expertise to work in selecting the best of this year's graphic novels for young adult and elementary/middle grade audiences. Panel …